


love leaves no fruit

by sansonrio



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Angst, Angst and Tragedy, Child Abuse, Gen, Hurt No Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, One Shot, Ozai (Avatar) Being a Terrible Parent, Ozai (Avatar) is an Asshole, Short One Shot, Wordcount: 100-500, Zuko (Avatar)-centric, ozai really is the worst, this is not a happy story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-09
Updated: 2020-09-09
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:46:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26367409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sansonrio/pseuds/sansonrio
Summary: Ozai is a cruel man. Zuko learns this at a young age.
Relationships: Azula & Zuko (Avatar), Iroh & Zuko (Avatar), Ozai & Zuko (Avatar), Ursa & Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 146





	love leaves no fruit

Ozai is a cruel man. Zuko learns this at a young age.

-

He’ll whisper _Father scares me_ to his mother, her arms wrapped around him, making Zuko feel loved but small all the same. _Your father will never hurt you_ Ursa whispers back.

Zuko has the scars to prove otherwise.

–

More than anything, Zuko learns to keep his head down.

Father tells him as much as they head to the Firelord’s audience chambers, tight grip on the back of Zuko’s neck. Ursa, coaxing Azula out from behind a statue, doesn’t notice.

Zuko leaves his hair down the following week. No one asks anything of it.

-

He doesn’t quite remember the fall, but the shock of hitting the ground wakes Zuko late into the night.

Air wouldn’t come as easily; black filled the sky where it used to be blue. Something screamed _wrongwrongwrong_ as he tried to push himself back up, up to face Azula where she laughed _Careful Zuzu_ somewhere in the branches above him. 

His arm throbbed, pulsing along to his heartbeat, each breath bringing a searing wave of heat like Father’s hands. 

Mother sat next to him as the doctor wrapped the broken wrist in a tight, stiff material. He nods along when she tells him _Climbing trees is dangerous, Zuko, you must be more careful_.

Uncle gives him a sad smile, but tells Ursa _Kids will be kids, these things happen_.

Zuko doesn’t say he’s afraid of Azula, too.

–

Zuko sees less and less of his mother.

On occasion, she’d come to his private trainings; those became his favorite days. She’d smile even as he faltered the steps of that day’s kata sequence, calling him her _cutest little flame_ , encouraging him to continue in place of where his masters snapped him into the correct position. It felt like _learning_ with her, and Zuko was happy that someone– that _anyone_ – would see his progress.

Ozai, once, stopped in the courtyard. Zuko fell on his landing. He watched from the ground as his father asked for Ursa to follow him back into the palace.

Zuko sees less of his mother and begins to realize it is a punishment.

–

The blade Uncle sent Zuko from Ba Sing Se is tucked safely under his pillow.

Azula likes to visit him some nights. 

He does not tell his father.

–

Zuko thinks pain is the only thing to truly exist in the world.

Even Uncle’s presence doesn’t explain the numbness on the left side of his face; the soft scent of jasmine doesn’t erase years he suffered under Ozai’s ( _burning, always burning_ ) hands, and he feels like a fool to think his mother could have protected him.

He might have been happy, leaving that place, if it hadn’t cost a lifetime of running a fool’s errand.

 _That’s all I am_ , he thinks. He feels weak.

Uncle holds his hand and looks at him with fierce determination. 

_We will find the Avatar_ he tells Zuko.

Zuko thinks his uncle is a fool, too.

**Author's Note:**

> say hi to me on tumblr: rahshala


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